1. Field of the Invention (Technical Field)
The present invention relates to a system of mortarless, interlocking building modules for rapid construction of architecturally varied walls. The modules in the invention preferably employ ultra low density materials, such as concrete utilizing expanded perlite as an aggregate.
2. Background Art
The world is rigorously searching for alternative building materials and methods that can be used in place of diminishing forest resources. The use of forest products for building materials is causing a great deal of environmental damage as well as political stress.
This invention can replace the standard method of building walls with wood framing, vapor barriers, and insulation. Low density concrete mixtures can serve as ah alternative building material to satisfy a percentage of the current demand for building materials. Walls built with these low density cementitious mixes may be load bearing if the load to be carried is spread out over sufficient area. Low density concretes have high R-values so walls built with them, if thick enough, would not need the additional step of adding insulation. This invention modularizes this material into a user friendly, versatile, architecturally flexible system.
Typical of prior art modular building materials are U.S. Pat. No. 4,297,816, entitled "Interlocking Construction Block", to Kella, et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 5,421,135, entitled "Interlocking Building Blocks", to Stevens, et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 5,003,746, entitled "Arcuate and Curvilinear Assemblies Comprising Tandemly Arranged Building Blocks Having Degrees of Rotation", to Wilston; U.S. Pat. No. 4,965,979, entitled "Concrete Block Wall", to Larrivee, et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 4,573,301, entitled "Interlocking Building Blocks", to Wilkinson; U.S. Pat. No. 4,107,894, entitled "Interlocking Cementitious Building Blocks", to Mullins; U.S. Pat. No. 3,618,279, entitled "Building Block", to Sease; U.S. Pat. No. 3,030,093, entitled "Checkerwork", to Reintjes; U.S. Pat. No. 2,826,906, entitled "Wall of Building Blocks", to Rice; and U.S. Pat. No. 2,262,199, entitled "Toy Building Brick", to Paulson. Interlocking blocks of the type shown in the above patents are unsatisfactory for varying reasons, including inability to sustain high loads, no provision for post tensioning, inadequate sealing or insulating properties, little or no flexibility in varying shapes and designs to fit construction needs, and no means to allow end users to easily design structures. The invention utilizes as much of the interior space of the block as possible while still providing channels for utility routing, bond beam reinforcement, and the post-tension apparatus. The prior art requires blocks that have larger open areas within the block, requiring mixes or materials of higher psi ratings than with the present invention. More filled area means more square inches of surface area to carry load on. The present invention requires lower skill to construct than prior art systems, and requires fewer steps to construct a finished structure. Instead of having to first erect the structure by traditional wood framing techniques, then add insulation, sheathing, vapor barrier, inside finish treatment, and exterior finish treatment, the method of the present invention greatly simplifies that process. The blocks combine the framing, vapor barrier and insulation steps while providing a load-bearing system of walls for a structure.